I just got into JW.org’s Wi-Fi network.

[TrueTomHarley]

4 hours ago, George88 said:

How about any other negative thing you can offer against the Watchtower. I find your post extremely poetic, not funny, just poetic being you are a former Bethel member.

Okay, so I know this post is not addressed to me, having never been a Bethel member, but I did visit there once, as a young man, and dined with them. I quickly got the sense of the food-plate flow, that after prayer, everyone picked up the serving dish nearest him or her, helped themselves, then passes it around till all ten people had been served. So, when dessert came, strawberries, I saw the plate start with the person on my immediate left and head clockwise. When it finally makes its way to me, I knew everyone had had their shot, so what remained was mine. Alas—I did not realize that some postpone their desserts and have it later!

So here I am, munching away, when someone says, ‘Hey! Who took all the strawberries?!’ Whereupon, I looked up, strawberries hanging from my mouth, and made like Chuck Berry: 

“It wasn't me, Sarge. Uhm-uhm, Sarge, it wasn't me. It must have been some other body, Uh, uh, Sarge, it wasn't me.”

 

[George88]

1 hour ago, TrueTomHarley said:

Okay, so I know this post is not addressed to me, having never been a Bethel member, but I did visit there once, as a young man, and dined with them.

For a moment, I thought you were about to say something outrageous, like they were collecting donations through a plate passing, lol! Tens of thousands have visited Bethel. Many of us have sat with GB members, and some of us have even been backstage with them at assemblies. There have also been instances when some of us have shared meals with the GB during assemblies when hot meals were being prepared in the past.

I also bear a knife wound on my left shoulder, a grim souvenir from the gangs of New York. Not everyone has lived a sheltered life or been perceived as harmless based on appearance alone. There's no need for me to narrate my entire life story, but I must emphasize that many of us here have not truly experienced life's harsh realities. There is a profound significance to enduring genuine life struggles.

[JW Insider]

6 hours ago, George88 said:

The issue in New York was the significant presence of gangs, which led to the perceived necessity for armed security.

You might be right, but I have a feeling it was more of a carryover from the 1940's. This was a rough era for the Watchtower, and opposition could get crazy in some areas of the US. I don't know that they ever had much of a problem with intruders. The guards did their rounds at night, and couldn't turn on any lights, with just a flashlight through dark hallways and corridors. 

At Brooklyn Bethel, every four to six months, all single brothers (under 30, I think) would get an assignment for either night-time dish duty (to help out the overnight kitchen crew) or guard duty. I always traded my dish duty for night-time guard duty because it gave me the morning off the next day, and I hate doing dishes. But we had no weapons and were told never to approach an intruder, just call the police. In fact, it was just a matter of walking around with a key and turning it into a "time-clock" at a location on two ends of each floor, and making that round two or three times during the night. If we found windows open we were to close them, and if we found any lights left on we were to turn them off, of if we smelled an excess of 'flammables' we could turn on a light and investigate. I was told that making these rounds reduced our insurance rates considerably. The closest thing to an intruder I ever found was a Bethelite who had stayed in the Squibb factory building overnight to hide away in a dark place with someone I assumed was his girlfriend. 

[TrueTomHarley]

7 hours ago, George88 said:

There's no need for me to narrate my entire life story

I think there is.

[Pudgy]

… does this mean I have to rent a defibrillator?

[George88]

3 hours ago, TrueTomHarley said:

I think there is.

I disagree. The issue is that some of you believe only your complaints matter. However, seeking approval from you all serves no purpose in the eyes of God. Therefore, it is clear that my priority is not to impress any of you.

[TrueTomHarley]

1 hour ago, George88 said:

I disagree. The issue is that some of you believe only your complaints matter. However, seeking approval from you all serves no purpose in the eyes of God. Therefore, it is clear that my priority is not to impress any of you.

As Jehovah’s Witnesses, we are encouraged not only to take an interest in people, but to ‘love people’—the title of our latest brochure. The “eyes of God” want us to do this. It is very hard to do this with someone who reveals nothing of himself, who eternally thinks everyone is out to get him, and who seemingly exists only to criticize others.

You should spill more.

[Pudgy]

[George88]

3 hours ago, TrueTomHarley said:

As Jehovah’s Witnesses, we are encouraged not only to take an interest in people, but to ‘love people’—the title of our latest brochure.

Where does criticism of the Watchtower, the Governing Body, and Elders fit in this situation? Does it truly seem reasonable to you?

My life story is so rich and complex that it would fill a book. Are you implying that you would like to be my ghostwriter?

3 hours ago, TrueTomHarley said:

The “eyes of God” want us to do this. It is very hard to do this with someone who reveals nothing of himself, who eternally thinks everyone is out to get him, and who seemingly exists only to criticize others.

Hence, it is imperative that we adhere to our Christian principles, as the divine gaze of God expects this from us. Consequently, when an individual employs baseless personal criticism, they themselves become vulnerable to critique, as they fail to uphold the very principle they are being questioned about.

So, you don't have a lifetime to hear my life story. lol!

[Miracle Pete]

55 minutes ago, George88 said:

Where does criticism of the Watchtower, the Governing Body, and Elders fit in this situation? Does it truly seem reasonable to you?

My life story is so rich and complex that it would fill a book. Are you implying that you would like to be my ghostwriter?

Hence, it is imperative that we adhere to our Christian principles, as the divine gaze of God expects this from us. Consequently, when an individual employs baseless personal criticism, they themselves become vulnerable to critique, as they fail to uphold the very principle they are being questioned about.

So, you don't have a lifetime to hear my life story. lol!

Which of your life story is Alphonso and which is George88 not to mention BTK or whatever your other aliases are. 
‘ my life story is rich and complex’  is a statement that could only be uttered by a raging egocentric. 
do you have ‘ many leather bound books in your library’ and does it smell like ‘ rich mahogany’ ?

[Pudgy]

… fine Corinthian leather?

[George88]

Which one is yours Tom, Many Miles, Miracle Pete, etc. Get a life Pete.

Could it be James Ulterego, lol!

This is precisely why I refrain from sharing details of my life in this place, as it often yields nothing but narrow-minded and senseless responses. Yet, Tom gets an upvote from the ignorant.

I trust that Pete's imprudent reply has provided you with the necessary clarification, Tom.